Taking anxiety out of the fitting experience
Deborah Lewthwaite knows that it can be challenging for women to come for their first fitting after a mastectomy.
As the owner of The Fitting Room, Deborah has helped many women through this new experience.
"We really want to reassure ladies that we understand that, and we do our very best to make sure they have an excellent fitting experience. We train our fitting staff thoroughly, and we don’t mind if ladies need to have a ’moment’ and a box of tissues! Often, women will walk out saying, ’I feel normal again’, and ’that was so much easier than I thought it would be.’
"In fact, the shop was started after one of the original owners, Anna Stevenson, had a mastectomy and found there was a gap in Christchurch for a good range of items after surgery. So it is a key reason for the shop’s existence."
Deborah says the range of prostheses is growing all the time with a wide range of options available.
"Some ladies have had a heavy prosthesis for 10 years that they’ve hardly worn because of its weight. There are now lighter options and they make all the difference," she says.
"The most popular styles in our store are 30% lighter than full weight, and there is even a 60% lighter option, that older ladies in particular are taking advantage of. There are also foam ’leisure’ forms that many women buy to wear in swimsuits, but some choose to wear one as their everyday prosthesis.
"It’s really about what will work for each person individually. The other important thing here is having a good-fitting bra to carry the weight of the prosthesis, so if your prosthesis is feeling heavy, it may be that it’s time for a new bra."
The Fitting Room is a one-stop shop for prostheses and pocketed bras.
"We have been fitting breast prostheses in Christchurch now for nine years. We know our products well, how to listen attentively to each customer, and to find what will fit them best and suit them best," she says.
Funding from the Ministry of Health (Healthpac) will usually cover a prosthesis and one to three bras depending on the styles that are chosen. For products fitted in-store, The Fitting Room also has a comfort guarantee. If something is not comfortable, items can be exchanged up to 14 days later.
Women can claim their breast prosthesis Healthpac funding at The Fitting Room if it is their first fitting, and also if they have made a claim before elsewhere.
"The details are held with Healthpac, and we simply need to phone and check your balance. We will just need some details, e.g. name and birthdate, to do that," Deborah says.
"It doesn’t matter if you’ve been somewhere else before; you can still come to The Fitting Room. We strongly recommend making an appointment for a postmastectomy fitting, to be sure that we can book you in with plenty of time, and with a fully trained post-surgery fitter."
Deborah says there is no reason to stop swimming because of having a mastectomy either.
"Anita Care does fantastic pocketed swimwear that hold a breast prosthesis, and we have recently started stocking some pocketed styles from elegant Australian brand Jets as well."
The Fitting Room has just launched a new online store that means it’s easy to order a repeat bra over the website, which is particularly handy for out-of-town customers.
Going into the store is still the best way for an initial fitting after surgery, and the ladies at The Fitting Room will provide a warm welcome.